Aug 29, 2017 5 min read

Diedre Staso has not had an easy life. But not once has she ever given up, no matter how easy – or tempting – that might have been.

Her courage and determination have enabled Staso to maintain her independence and have served as an inspiration to others.

And for that, she is being rewarded.

On Nov. 8, the 45-year-old Washington woman will receive the Comeback Award from the Western Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association at the Cambria Hotel and Suites in Pittsburgh.

“It’s awesome. I am really, really flattered and honored,” said Staso, who is employed part time at Transitional Paths to Independent Living in Washington, where she works with the membership coordinator by providing services to clients.

“It really means a great deal to me to be selected,” Staso said. “I’m surprised. I know there were a lot of entries. I usually don’t have any luck when it comes to stuff like that.”

The award recipient is either a current or former client of a WPTLA member who has shown rare resolve in overcoming a serious disabling injury, said Laurie Lacher, WPTLA executive director.

“Deidre exemplifies what this award truly means,” said Lacher, adding that Staso was a unanimous choice. “She has bounced back to become a much stronger person. We are so pleased to honor her and her accomplishments.”

TRPIL CEO Kathleen Kleinmann agrees.

“We are pleased with Deidre as a team member of TRPIL,” Kleinmann said. “She is an asset to our organization, and she promotes a positive attitude and can-do spirit. She is worthy of the Comeback Award.”

TRPIL also will receive a $2,500 donation from the WPTLA for the Comeback Award.

Staso was born with spina bifida, a congenital disorder where the backbone and spinal canal do not close before birth, causing the spinal cord and the covering membranes to protrude out of the back. She had 35 painful and sometimes immoblizing operations before she was 30 years old to correct problems that resulted from her birth defect. She has just one kidney and poor circulation, and she is susceptible to blood clots, kidney stones and assorted infections.

In June 1999, she underwent elective surgery to lengthen her left leg by 2 inches. The surgery involved breaking her left leg in three places and pulling the bones apart, leaving a 2-inch gap. To give the bones a chance to fuse together – and thus extend the length of the extremity – she wore a brace with 12 pins stuck through her leg for eight months. She then wore a hard cast for three months.

However, after the surgery she developed a severe infection in her foot, and doctors feared they might have to amputate. Fortunately, they didn’t.

But it was in 2010 that her strength and courage were really put to the test.

During what was supposed to be a routine hysterectomy, Staso’s bowel was perforated in four places. She developed sepsis and required a feeding tube. She spent two months at McGee-Womens Hospital of UPMC before asking to be transferred to Washington Hospital, where she underwent another surgical procedure. She was there for a month when she was discharged three days before Christmas.

However, all did not go well once she got home. While getting out of the bathtub, Staso’s left leg buckled and snapped. She had broken her femur.

The next two years were filled with countless medical procedures: three surgeries, bone stimulators, braces, casts, pins and rods.

“I had everything you can imagine to help the bone stay in place and grow back together. Nothing would help,” Staso said.

Ultimately, her left leg was amputated above the knee, and she had to get a prosthesis.

However, shortly after that, Staso developed a urinary tract infection that resulted in kidney failure. Once again she was hospitalized in the Intensive Care Unit.

“While this was happening, I gained a lot of weight and had to get a new prothesis,” Staso said.

What’s worse, though, Staso said, is that she had to abandon in her crutches and use a wheelchair instead.

“That is horrible for me,” she said. “It’s taken my independence from me. Now, I have to depend on somebody to push me or help me. It’s been very, very stressful for me. I’m not used to depending on anybody.”

In the midst of all this, Staso’s husband asked for a divorce, and she had to give up her job working for physicians James Clements and Michael Falcione in Washington.

But she got bored just hanging around her apartment, and since it was hard to maintain a job with all of her doctors’ appointments, she started to volunteer at TRPIL

“I thought TRPIL would be a good place to be,” Staso said.

She was right.

“Yes, I get discouraged. I ask why me, that kind of thing,” Staso said. “That’s where TRPIL comes into play and helps me. All these people who come in aren’t able to do what I do. I live on my own. I have a car.

“On the other hand, I get so frustrated. Some people don’t appreicate life and take for granted simple things, like walking to the refrigerator to get a drink.”

Staso admits that she was “afraid” to live on her own. But thanks to her border collie, Shelby, and her family and friends, she is doing fine.

“I thought, ‘How am I going to do it?’ But I do it,” Staso said. “I get a lot of help from my friends and family. I’ve never given up. I keep going. I’ve got to. Life’s too short. I am blessed in a lot of ways.”